By Caleb Ayansina

ABUJA— A media expert and the Managing Director of the Audvideo Ltd, Mr Onochie Amasiani, has said that Nigeria needs people with requisite knowledge and standard equipment to succeed in the digitization process of the broadcast industry.

Amasiani said though Nigeria has what it takes to transmit from analogue to digital, but regretted that the country is not ready for the transmission judging from the look of things.

He said the Federal Government justified the decision to alter the nation’s broadcast industry’s June 2012 deadline for the migration from analogue to digital to a new date of January 1, 2015, citing the need to ensure a seamless transition to digital broadcasting.

Speaking in Abuja during a workshop organised by the Audvideo Ltd for handlers of cameras at various television stations across the country, Amasiani said: “Matching consumers’ demands and expectations in terms of production, presentation, and content consumption” should be the watch word.

According to him, “media broadcasting has evolved with time, going by the historical events and patterns. Now, we are in the digital era and quite a lot of events have gone underway to welcome and sustain digitization.

“The era of digitization sees the telecommunication and ICT sector as major players in the world of Media Broadcast and Entertainment.”

The niche the Media and Broadcast industry can carve for itself to remain relevant or even more relevant is in its innovativeness and knack for creativity.”

Amasiani added the country must brave up to accept “the trend of globalization, adopting new strategies, apt readiness to take on new challenges that would arise at all times.”

Parading some high definition cameras from Panasoni, he said Nigerian media do not have a choice but to join the train of digitization for them to remain competitive.